Best 2017 Oktoberfest, So Far

Was it the brown bottles that got you to finally pick it up?

I didn't mind the green ones because I'd just buy a case, but do have to admit that the brown ones are a much needed improvement anyway.

 

yes brown ones. actually my local german place in Astoria has mostly Hofbrau beers on tap, I wonder if they have this Oktoberfest.

 

Had a bunch of Oktoberfest lately.
Besides the SN, Hofbrau and Paulaner Wiesn:

Victory Festbier - its very different, I cannot place the flavor description though. Tobacco? Not sweet caramel but something unlike any Oktoberfest I've ever had. Its not bad, I do like it but its a curious taste.

Had some Bell's on tap this weekend, it was a good Marzen but the Hacker-Pschorr I had later that evening was a lot better.

Harpoon was forgettable but part of a variety pack so no big deal.

Looking to find Mars Zen from Barrier a NY local.

 

One of these days I need to hit up the Hofbrauhaus near Grand Central- I'm sure it's on over there.

But Zum Schneider is more of a priority for me- too bad it's so out of the way...(well, for me, anyway ).

 

Come to think of it, I did check my review history the other day and I realized that I did try Spaten's Oktoberfestbier last year and I did think it was pretty good.

 

Bought a single SA Oktoberfest this year, and i have to agree with you 100%. I have bought and tried nearly every oktoberfest i could find this year and the ones i have liked less have been the ones with a cloying sweetness to them. The best versions, IMO, maintain a rich malt flavor but with a clean, crisp, dry finish. Hacker-Schorr and Paulaner were my favorites. Sierra Nevada makes a damn good American interpretation.

Wish I could find a Spaten.

Prost

 

For this fall I'm trying to reset my palate back to "beer" rather than the tropical fruit juice and smoothies that I've been drinking over the past year. It's funny too how imported beer always seemed a little too expensive but after a year in the NEIPA weeds German beer seems like such a steal!

So thank you everyone for this thread, I've recently picked up a bunch of Oktoberfest beers that have been suggested on here and I'm looking forward to trying them. Prost!

 

Great Lakes Oktoberfest.

 

My subjective taste goes to this brew for Oktoberfest beer.
A place that makes a good one for over Ten-thousand years is OK in my book

 

What?

 

They have it in the restaurant as of this past weekend.

 

Please don't let my affection for it build it up. This beer just clicks with me and it could just be a personal thing. It clicked with me exactly the same way it did 2 years ago, so I no longer feel that it was just a momentary thing. Zum Schneider's board called it the "Traunsteiner Festbier" at a dangerously drinkable 6.3%. BeerAdvocate has the following four Traunstein beers in their database: a "Traunstein Festbier" at 5.7% (listed here as a helles), a "Hofbrauhaus Traunstein Brauhaus Schmitz Oktoberfest" at 5.7%, a "Fursten Trunk" at 5.5% (listed here as a pilsner, but the Traunstein website calls this their festival beer), and a "Hofbräu Oktoberfest" at 6.3% (which has the most ratings by far). According to the rating here, only 34% of users "liked" the latter beer... so let that temper your expectations after listening to my smitten and worthless ramblings.

 

From left to right:

Von Trapp, Weihenstephaner, Munich Hofbrauhaus, Riegele Privat (Iisted on BA as a Dortmunder but the brewery calls it a "festival beer" and a "Helles fest beer").

 

Oktoberfest, especially the pale Oktoberfest style, may be the style I put the least stock in in terms of BA user ratings than any other.

Only 32.9% of users liked Hofbrau's Oktoberfestbier (although this could be a green bottle thing from previous years). Which doesn't even put it in the top 100 for Oktoberfests on this site.

Weihenstephan's is a perennial favorite, and perhaps my favorite this year. Only 56% of BA users liked this beer, and it is ranked 50th here on this site. No green bottle there. Perhaps they knock it because it's pale, and they expect it to be amber?

But then again, Paulaner's Wies'n is ranked 19th, with a 69.3% approval rating, and last year's pale Oktoberfest from Sierra Nevada was likely in the top 10 with an 81.5% approval rating. So who knows.

 

Bear in mind these could all be "Festbiers" and not be Oktoberfests. In Germany, Festbier is simply a term for a beer brewed for a festival. So their Pilsner could still be a "Festbier".

For example, the same bar that has Traunstein, also has an Andech's "Festbier" listed. But I think someone in the Germany forum pointed out to me that Andech's doesn't specifically brew an Oktoberfest beer for this time of year, it's simply their "Spezial Hell"...which I gather is just a Dortmunder/Export Helles of some sort. They do however call it a "festival beer".

http://andechs.de/en/brewery/our-beer-specialities/spezial-hell/

Which honestly, all the pale Oktoberfests are really just Dortmunders/Exports in my opinion, if you want to see what a "pale Oktoberfest" from Ayinger would taste like, just pick up their Jahrhundert (if you can find it fresh of course...which without bottle dating may be difficult...).

 

I'm a big fan of the Traunsteiner Helles, so that's a big motivation for me. The fact that it clicks with you is just a bonus .

As to the scores, they say more about the raters than the beer, as far as I'm concerned, and I'll leave it at that.

 

Um... Not so fast my friend. There are big differences between Dortmund style (the "export" being a misnomer held over from past misinterpretations) and Festbier -- a big factor being the mineral character so often found in Dortmunder.

And yes, Jahrhundert is of Export strength, just as Edelstoff is, but it's far from a Dortmunder... or a Festbier.

I think you'll find that a German brewery will brew a Festbier more in line with those we're discussing from Munich than just slapping a label on their current Helles or Pilsner. German brewmasters are finicky that way.

 

Totally agree. I get the Edelstoff most often, and it's a far cry from any Dortmunder I've had.

 

From the latest BJCP info (sounding very much like Ron's voice in the update):
"The term “Export” is a beer strength descriptor under German brewing tradition, and is not strictly synonymous with the “Dortmunder” style; beer from other cities or regions can be brewed to Export strength, and labeled as such (even if not necessarily exported)."

 

Interesting, I didn't know that. The only "Dortmunder" I've come across was Jahrhundert, which is classified as a "Dortmunder/Export" here on Beeradvocate, so I made the incorrect leap...

I'd be curious to have this beer side by side with say, Weihenstephan's Oktoberfestbier. I think something like Hofbrau being 6.3% ABV and close to a weak Helles Bock, but not quite (to my palate at least) would be inappropriate.

Because honestly, from memory Jahrhundert tastes similar, and I'd be curious if I could pick out the two in blind tasting.

The BJCP is on a roll lately though, as their comments on "German Helles Exportbier" seems spot on with your comments.

"Comments: Sometimes known as Dortmunder or Dortmunder Export. Brewed to a slightly higher starting gravity than other light lagers, providing a firm malty body and underlying maltiness to complement the sulfate-accentuated hop bitterness. The term “Export” is a beer strength descriptor under German brewing tradition, and is not strictly synonymous with the “Dortmunder” style; beer from other cities or regions can be brewed to Export strength, and labeled as such (even if not necessarily exported).

Characteristic Ingredients: Minerally water with high levels of sulfates, carbonates and chlorides, German or Czech noble hops, Pilsner malt, German lager yeast. Newer commercial versions can contain adjuncts and hop extract."

Beat me to it.

@meefmoff looks like I led you in the wrong direction...well, try Jahrhundert anyways, it's a great one!